Strength, Power and Training Surface for Vertical Jump Performance

In lots of sports, good vertical jump ability is what really matters. You can’t expect to do well in basketball, volleyball, and a number of other sports unless you can jump high. Of course, some people simply jump higher than the others, but this doesn’t mean that you can’t catch them up with a good workout routine.

According to a recent study, strength and power workout had a massive influence on vertical jumping performances. Resistance training proved to be an effective way to improve leg strength and increase explosiveness. Another study proved the importance of the training surface. It showed that doing the strengthening exercises on stable surfaces was not only much safer than doing the same on unstable surfaces; it also provided a maximum force output.

Power & Strength Exercises for Better Vert Jumping

A research done on 40 physically active men, aged 23.5 years on average, showed the effect power and strength exercises had on vertical jumping. The conclusion of the study was that both these types of workout had a similar effect on jumping. The advice of the researchers is that those who want to improve their vert jumping ability need to become stronger in general.

Although it is advisable to do power activities on a regular basis, putting more emphasis on your legs is bound to do well on your jumping capability. Still, the research has shown that leg power is simply not enough. Those who are have more strength in general are likely to do better when it comes to vert jumping.

Stable Versus Unstable Surface

As expected, doing exercises on stable surfaces rather than on unstable was proved by a study to be better for vert jumping. The study was focused on the power output in the rising phase of squats. One group was doing squats on a flat, stable surface, while the other was performing them on a BOSU balance trainer ball.

The experiment showed that in the second case, most of the leg muscles were used for keeping the balance, instead of producing the maximum power output, which was the case with the first group. For that reason, if you are looking to improve your vertical jump, make sure that the surface is as stable as possible. This means that if the floor is slippery, you need to use a rubber floor mat.

Workout Programs to Improve Vert Jumping

As the two aforementioned studies showed, improving vertical jumping is possible. However, the results depend heavily on the type of workout you do for this particular issue. It’s not enough simply to focus on making your legs more powerful – you need to strengthen your whole body. Probably your best choice is to use the exercises designed especially for vert jumping improvement.

The good news is that there are lots of them on the market today. Bad news is that not all of them are legit. If you are willing to listen to our recommendation, go with the Vert Shock program, which was made by a former pro basketball player and Adam Folker, with the help of his friend, Justin ‘Jus Fly’ Darlington, one of the world’s best dunkers.